Longmont Times Call: Breaking News, Sports, Weather, Traffic

Warriors have big second-half rally to take 2-1 lead on Nuggets

The Nuggets' Wilson Chandler ties up Jarrett Jack of the Warriors in the early stages of Game 3 on Friday night in Oakland. (John Leyba, The Denver Post)

OAKLAND, Calif. — Fate hovered. The ball floated in the Oracle Arena air like a full moon. Andre Iguodala's half-court hoist was on line, as the buzzer sounded. Alas, a miss. The ball hit the front of the rim, and just like Gordon Hayward in the NCAA title game, this final thrust couldn't connect.

The Nuggets lost 110-108 in Game 3 on Friday night to the Warriors at Oracle Arena. Third-seeded Denver now trails 2-1 in the best-of-seven playoff series.

"I was just more upset with how we gave the game away," Iguodala said. "I gave the shot a push — if it goes in, we stole a game, if not, we didn't deserve to win. That was my thought process. We've got to fight back."

But Ty Lawson botched the big play. Denver was down just one point with 5.3 seconds left when the point guard, who scored a career playoff-high 35 points, dribbled down the right side and was double-teamed and lost control for a turnover.

"I'd like to see the video. It looked like he got mauled," Nuggets coach George Karl said. "Somehow he decided to dribble out of bounds, I guess."

Said Lawson: "It was supposed to be a screen/roll with (teammate Wilson Chandler). They ended up trapping me, and I didn't see anybody behind me or anything like that. You know, I just lost the ball. I can't put it on the refs or nothing like that."

After a timeout, Denver fouled rookie Harrison Barnes with 3.7 seconds left. He made 1-of-2 free throws for Golden State's two-point lead. Denver, with no timeouts left, got the ball to Iguodala, whose half-court shot was no good.

Denver is in trouble. Yes, Golden State still needs to win two more games, but the Warriors are lathered in momentum. Game 4 in the series is Sunday at Oracle Arena, where the crowd is loud and proud.

Andre Miller drives on Klay Thompson of the Golden State Warriors during the second quarter of Game 3 on Friday night in Oakland, Calif. (John Leyba, The Denver Post)

The Nuggets had numerous chances in the final minute but missed several shots and committed two critical turnovers.

Chandler's 3-point shot from the left corner with 16.6 seconds left drew the Nuggets to within 109-108. Then, after a Golden State timeout with 9.4 seconds left, the Warriors failed to inbound the ball on time, giving Denver one last shot. That's when the play was set up for Lawson.

"Ty was incredible," Karl said. "That's what we come to expect from Ty."

Golden State led 106-102 with two minutes left when Stephen Curry stole the ball from Denver's Andre Miller and was fouled at the other end. Curry made both free throws for a six-point lead with 1:54 left, giving him 29 points and 11 assists.

Lawson scored on a conventional three-point play, making it 108-105. Golden State then turned the ball over on a poor pass by Jarrett Jack with 1:33 left. With a chance to draw close, Lawson missed in the lane. After Curry missed a layin, Lawson had a shot to tie the game with an open 3-pointer but missed.

"We didn't play our best brand of basketball," Jack said. "Luckily we're still able to come away with a win."

Curry missed a 3-pointer, giving the Nuggets another shot, but Iguodala threw a sloppy pass across the lane to Kenneth Faried that was picked off. A free throw by Golden State made it 109-105.

"We did the things we needed to do to win the game, but we kind of got immature, which is kind of our Achilles' heel," Iguodala said.

By the end of the third quarter, the score was Golden State 87, Denver 84. To put that in perspective, the Chicago Bulls beat the Brooklyn Nets the previous night 79-76.

Lawson was masterful until his miscues near the end. Ty played like "February Ty" — unafraid and unflappable. He got in the paint faster than you can read this sentence.

He was 4-for-4 in the paint in the first half, which he finished with 19 points — the scoring total he tallied in 38 minutes of Game 2. The way Lawson used his body Friday was nothing short of amazing; he zigzagged through traffic in transition or dribbled around defenders.

Defensively, the Nuggets came out swarming, trying to trap the Golden State ball handlers closer to midcourt than the 3-point line. At times, it rattled the Warriors and, if anything, was a psychological statement from Denver: "We're coming at you."

By halftime, the Nuggets had forced 14 turnovers, which they converted for 20 points. In Game 1 and Game 2, Golden State had 18 and 17 turnovers. The Nuggets led 66-54 at halftime Friday, but the Warriors outscored Denver 33-18 to take the lead into the fourth.

With Nuggets center Kosta Koufos playing poorly throughout the series, getting gobbled up in pick-and-roll plays, Karl decided to gamble. He started Chandler, a 6-foot-8 forward, alongside the 6-8 Faried in the low post. In a series with the theme of "go small or go home," the plan fit the bill. As for Faried, who played adequately in Game 2 but didn't have big numbers (four points and two rebounds), he showed much more energy and was much more efficient Friday. He finished with 15 points and seven rebounds.

Warriors center Andrew Bogut was constantly battling the Denver big men and earned a technical foul in a fiery moment. With 4:46 left in the third quarter, play was stopped when Denver's JaVale McGee was suddenly jaw to jaw with Bogut. The arena was as heated as the big men.

In Game 2, the Nuggets were drowned by the "Splash Brothers." Swishing shooters Curry and Klay Thompson had their way with Denver's defense, shooting 21-of-34 combined from the field. Friday, Curry was still Curry, playing potently despite an ankle injury that made him a game-time decision.

Denver's bench production, or lack thereof, had been a major issue in this series, except for Miller's game-saving performance in the opener. And the bench was lackluster Friday too.

Meanwhile, the Warriors' bench was strong, with Carl Landry impressive on the boards. He finished with 19 points and five rebounds.

"There's a lot of good tonight. We got better tonight," Karl said. "We didn't win tonight. It's just two wins, they're barely halfway there. We got work to do. The process gets fatiguing, every other day here the rest of the way."

MacIntyre feels Colorado is capable of making run at bowl gameCU BUFFS FALL CAMPWhen: 29 practices beginning Wednesday morning 8:30-11 a.m. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday practices are open to the media and public next week. Full Story

MacIntyre feels Colorado is capable of making run at bowl gameCU BUFFS FALL CAMPWhen: 29 practices beginning Wednesday morning 8:30-11 a.m. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday practices are open to the media and public next week. Full Story

It didn't take long for Denver music observers to notice Plume Varia. Husband and wife Shon and Cherie Cobbs formed the band only two years ago, but after about a year they started finding themselves on best-of lists and playing the scene's top venues. Full Story